Container for inflammable liquids.



E. HURLBRI NK. CONTAINER FOR INFLAMMABLE L|QUIDS.'

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 13. 1915.

Patented Aug. 2-1, 1915. -TlIE| l 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

I/V VIE/V TOR WITNESSES mm H M M m m f M 7% i N Z v E. HURLBR INK.CONTAINER FOR INFLAMMABLE LIQUIDS.

APPLICATION FILED .IAN. l3. I915- Patented Aug. 24, 1915.

2 SHEET$-SHEET 2.

A TTOH/VEYS tion is to provide within the gasometer,

ERNST HURLBRINK, OF BERLIN-FRIEDENAU, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR T0 MARTINI &HUNEKE MASCHINENBAU-AKTIEN-GESELLSCHAFT, OF BERLIN, GERMANY, A COR-PORATION OF GERMANY.

CONTAINER FOR INFLAMMABLE LIQUIDS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

PatentedAug. 2a, 1915.

Application filed January 13, 1915. Serial No. 2,092.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ERNST HURLBRINK, a

subject of the German Emperor, and a resident of Berlin-Friedenau,Germany, have inflammable liquids and particularly to large sizedcontainers connected with gasometers'having a vertically movablefloating bell and containing a supply of a protective gas to fill theupper space of the container, above the liquid.

One of the objects of the present invenshut-ofl means for automaticallypreventing the drawing off of inflammable liquid whenever' the gasometerbell reaches its lowermost position. In the absence of such means, thereis danger of the top of the gasometer bell being driven in by thepreponderance of atmospheric pressure over the. partial vacuum producedin the gasometer in case large amounts of liquid should be withdrawnfrom the container at the time the gasometer bell, having reached itslowermost position, is unable to go down farther.

Another object of this invention is to prevent the occurrence "0f adangerous vacuum independently of the shut-ofli' means referred toabove, by providing the bell with a venting device arranged to admit theambient air to the interior of the gasometer shortly before the bellreaches.

its lowermost position.

As an example, one form of the invention has been illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical section of agasometer provided with the present improvements, the bell being shownin its uppermost position; Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the bell inits lowermost position; Fig. 3 shows in vertical section, upon anenlarged scale, the air admitting or venting device; Fig. 4 is a-detailvertical section of a blowoff device; Fig. 5 "is a vertical section uponan enlarged scale, of the automatic shut-off valve located in thedraw-ofi pipe; and Figs. 6 and 7 are respectively a vertical and ahorizontal section of the controlling mechanism associated with saidshut-01f Vfll"emember or hell jsealing liquid 4 The container 1, adaptedto be filled with the inflammable liquid 2 (say, gasolene) is surroundedby an annular tank 3 which holds a sealing liquid 4 (say water) intowhich dips the lower edge of the inverted 5 fitted over and around thecontainer 1. The bell 5 is suitably guided in its vertical movement, asby means of rollers 6 carried by the bell and traveling upon stationaryvertical posts 7 of the customary framework. The usual counterbalancingdevice (not shownlmay be employed in connection with the bell. Thecontainer 1, which is open at the top, is filled by means.

of a pipe 9 passing through the bottom 8 of the container and extendingto its upper edge. If desired, a float may be provided in the container,with connections to control a valve in the pipe 9, so that the supply ofliquid to the container will be shut off automatically when the liquidattains a predetermined level in the container. The protective gas (anon-oxidizable gas, generally a mixture containing a large proportion ofcarbon dioxid) is supplied through a pipe 10 likewise passing throughthe bottom 8 and extending to the interior of the floating bell 5. Thedraw-ofl pipe or conduit'll through which the inflammable liquid isconveyed from the container 1 to the draw faucet or other discharge,device (not shown), also extends through the bottom 8 and is provided,at its exposed outer portion, with an automatically closing shut-offvalve 12, the operation of which is fully described below. In theconstruction shown, the interior of the container 1 and that of the tank3 are connected at their lower portions, as by an elbow pipe 13, so thatthe inflammable liquid 2 will rest on top of a layer of the which entersthe container at the bottom. With this arrangement, the container 1 issubjected to but a slight outward strain (chiefly at the upper portion)by the liquid in the annular surrounding tank 3. Whenever inflammableliquid is withdrawn through the conveying pipe 11, a certain amount ofthe sealing liquid 4 will pass vfrom the tank 3 through the elbow pipe13 into the container 1, the equilibrium being preserved automatically.Thus there can be no pressure exerted inwardly on the container wall bythe contents of the annular tank 3, but on the contrary, the wall in- Ibe subjected only to a slight outward pressure corresponding to thedifference in the height of the two liquid columns, due to thelr unlikespecific gravities. Theintake end 14 of the draw-off pipe 11 shouldbe ata level above the highest possible level of the sealing liquid 4 withinthe container 1 (Fig. 2) so that in no case will there be any danger ofdrawing off some of the sealing liquid through the pipe 11.

Of course, the interior of the container 1. and of the tank 3 can beplaced in com.-.

munication as described above only when the respective liquids (asgasolene and water) are not miscible.

As shown in the detail views Figs. 5, 6 and 7, the stem or spindle ofthe automatic shut-off valve 12 controlling the draw-ofl pipe 11,consists of an upper part 16 carrying a hand wheel 15 and of a lowerpart 18 carrying the valve proper '17. These parts 16, 18 are inalinement, and the lower part 18 passes through a stufling box 19 on thevalve casing 20, and is pressed .downward by a coiled spring 22, one endof which bears against a collar 21 on the stem part 18 and the otheragainst a stationary plate 23 rigidly connected with the valvecasig' g20. At its u per end the stem part 18 -QJarries a collar 5 part 16.These two collars are normally held together as in Fig. 5 by means ofaconnecting member or fork 27 the upper. part 16 being screw-threadedand fitted into a correspondingly threaded part of the stationary framemember 26. Thus, when the connecting member 27 is in the position shownin Fig. 5, the valve 17 will be moved toward or from its seat 28, byturning the hand wheel 15.

' When the floating bell reaches its lowermost position, then, accordingto this invention, the valve 12 controlling the draw-ofi' pipe 11 is tobe closed automatically, so as to prevent the withdrawal of any furtheramount of inflammable liquid 2 from' the container 1. For this purposethe following arrangement has been provided: A rope,

wire, or other flexible connection 32 attached to the horizontallymovable fork 27 passes in engagement with the roller 29 at the lower endof one of the guide posts 7, then to a roller 30 located at the upperend of said post, and finally to a weight or disk 31 located in the pathof an operating projection or member 33 secured to the bell 5.

Normally the connection 32 exerts no appreciable pull to remove theconnecting or coupling member 27 from the position shown in Fig. 5, itbeing understood that the spring 22 pulls the collar 24 downward so asto press it against the connecting member 27 and to prevent anyaccidental movement 4, and a similar collar 25-is provided at the lowerend of the upper stem thereof. The valve 12 is thus normally held open.When, however, the hell 5 reaches its lowermost position (Fig. 2), theoperating member 33, coming in contact with the projectlon 31, pulls itdown, and the connection 32 thus pulls the coupling member 27 away fromthe collars 24, 25 as indicated by dotted lines in Figs. 6 and 7. Thelower stem part 18 being thus released, the spring 22 of the couplingmember 27, etc.) the device might fail to operate as described above.

As an additional safeguard, there is provided therefore, another,independent device to prevent the formation of a partial vacuum in theapparatus if inflammable liquid is withdrawn after the hell 5 hasreached its lowermost position. This additional device consists of anair-admitting or venting valve 34 shown in detail in Fig. 3, andarranged to be opened as the bell sinks, shortly before it reaches itslowermost position. This venting. valve 34 comprises a valve proper 35,coiiperati'ng with the tubular or bell-shaped seat 36 screwed into thecover 37 of the nipple or housing 38 extending from the top or roof ofthe bell 5. To the lower part of the valve seat 36 there is secured byribs 39 a. cup-shaped member 40, an annular space 41 being formedbet-ween this member and 'the valve seat 36. This space 41 is closed atthe top by a ring 42 resting on the edges of the seat 36 and member 40and acting as a check valve opening toward the'interior of the hell 5.The valve proper 35 ispresse'd down on its seat by a weighted lever 44fulcrumed at 43 upon a bracket'secured to the bell.

As the bell 5 approaches its lowermost position, the free end of thelever 44 will engage an actuating projection 45 on vertical post 7 so asto cause said lever to swing on its fulcrum 43 and tounseat the valve 35(Fig. 2). Air may then pass from without past the automatically openingcheck valve 42 into the bell'5, so that atmospheric pressure willprevail within the bell, preventing the formation of any partial vacuumsuchas might cause the outside pressure to crush 01 at least deform thebell. The danger of forming an explosive mixture by .the admission ofsuch airis very slight, it

protective gas in slight proportions, will not materiallyreduce theprotective action of such gas. At any rate, under the very exceptionalcircumstances mentioned, it is more important to guard against thecrushing of'the bell by external pressure than against the very slightdanger of explosion.

In case an excess of protective gas should be supplied to the bell-5through the pipe 10, such excess will be allowed to escape by means ofthe automatic blowofl' device shown bestin Fig. 4;. This device consistsof asiphonlike elbow pipe 46 extending through the vertical wall of thebell 5 and secured thereto, the inner member 47 of the said pipe havingits end at a lower level than its outer member 48, which latter iswithin the outer space of the tank 3. Should the bell risefiln eyond itsnormal uppermost position, the member 48 and then the member 47 willrise from the sealing liquid 4 in the tank 3. The excess gas may thenpass out into the air through the pipe 46, and if any particles ofliquid are carried along by the escaping gas, these will be dischargedinto the main body of sealing liquid by the downwardly facing member 48.

While the example illustrated comprises a container arranged within thegasometer which holds the p rotective gas and is provided with avertically movable hell, it will be understood that the container andthe gasometer might be arranged side by side. This modification andothers may be made without departing from the nature of the invention asset @rth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A container for inflammable liquids, a gas holder adapted to containan inert gas communicating with said container and provided with avertically movable floating-bell, a draw-oflt pipe connected with saidcontainer, a shut-'ofi means in said pipe and means operative when saidbell arrives at a certain point in its downward movement near itslowermost position for causing the shut-ofi' means to close thedraw-ofi'vpipe.

2. A container for inflammable liquids, a gas holder adapted to containan inert gas communicating with said container and provided with avertically movable floating bell,

witnesses.

a draw-01f pipe connected with said container, a shut-off means in saidpipe adapted movement near; its lowermost position for releasing thesaid detent to cause the shut-. ofi means to close the draw-ofl pipe.

3. A container for inflammable liquids, a gasometer communicating withsaid container and provided with a vertically movable bell, a draw-offpipe connected with said container, a shut-off valve controlling saidpipe and provided with a two-part stem, a coupling member for normallyconnecting the parts of said stem and holding the valve for closing thevalve when theopen means coupling member is removed from its normalposition, and means, controlled by the movement of the gasometer bell,for shifting said coupling member from its normal position as the bellapproaches its lowermost position.

4. A container for inflammable liquids, a gas holder adapted to containan inert gas communicating with said container and provided with avertically movable floating bell, adraw-off pipe-connected with saidcontainer, a shut-off means in said pipe, means operative when said bellarrives at a certain point in its downward movement near its lowermostposition adapted to' cause the shut-'ofl means to close the draw-offpipe and means also controlled by the movement of said bell forestablishing open communication between the interior of said bell andthe outside air upon the further descent of said bell to a positionlower than that at which the shut-ofl' means in the draw-off pipe isarranged to close the same.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing ERNST HURLBR INK.

Witnesses WOLDEMAR HAUPT, HENRY HASPER.

